These are forward looking statements, so I presume the lawyers were involved as to what is to be said.
I did note two things. “…should be able to compile…” with my emphasis on should. May mean nothing of significance, but the store is opening in seven weeks, shouldn’t there be certainty by now?
The second thing is that the floods were an interruption to the supply chain. Any reduction in sales would be because supply fell below what the market wanted and an actual decline in units sold would have been preceded by a significant price jump and possible premium expenditures in order to expedite and prioritize shipments.
Did that happen and I missed the reporting on that?
If there was no price response, than demand is soft, either adjusting down with disaster related production delays, or manufacturers had overestimated and were in one sense relieved that they could cut back without signaling market problems.
I’ll be curious if the Thai floods appear as Apple discusses its financials, and I’m no investment analyst, but I think there’s some troubles a-brewing and the spin is starting.
Article source: http://www.zdnet.com/blog/microsoft/microsoft-admits-pc-shipments-down-ahead-of-next-weeks-earnings-report-/11620